Eversheds Sutherland lands key role on administration of British retailer Jaeger

Eversheds Sutherland has landed a key role on the administration of British retailer Jaeger, acting for the administrator AlixPartners.

Jaeger’s directors appointed administrators yesterday (10 April) after failing to find a suitable buyer for the business, which has 46 stores, 63 concessions, a head office in London and a logistics centre in King’s Lynn.

The administration puts 700 high street jobs at risk.

Last week private equity firm Better Capital sold Jaeger’s debts for £7m to a mystery buyer, in a deal that represents a loss of £62m for the private equity firm which acquired Jaeger in 2012 for £19.5m.

According to reports, Edinburgh Woollen Mill, owned by the billionaire Philip Day was understood to have taken control of the 133-year-old business.

The payment came as part of a bid to satisfy the UK Pensions Regulator (TPR), which was planning legal proceedings to secure a payment from Green. TPR used its own team of in-house lawyers.

Eversheds pensions partner Emma King led a team acting on the payment for the BHS trustees, while pensions partner Mark Latimour also advised. The payment comes as part of an attempt to plug the £571m shortfall left in BHS’s pension fund and follows a major parliamentary investigation into the failure of the high street chain.